1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to point-to-point or point-to-multipoint communications systems. More specifically, the present invention relates to systems and methods for providing a greater reliability for permitting direct-communication, such as a push-to-talk communication, between members of a communicating group of wireless telecommunication devices.
2. Description of the Related Art
In wireless telecommunication devices, such as cellular phones, PDAs, mini-laptops, and advanced pagers, the devices typically communicate over long distances by bridging telephone calls through existing cellular telephone networks and passing data packets across the network. These wireless devices often have limited to significant data processing and computing capability, and can accordingly send and receive software programs, in addition to voice, across the telephone network.
There exists a wireless telecommunication service that provides a quick one-to-one or one-to-many communication that is generically referred to as “Push-To-Talk” (PTT) capability. The specific PTT group of recipient devices for the communicating wireless device is commonly set up by the carrier and the wireless devices themselves do not allow the modification of the group, i.e. to include or drop individuals from the group, or to purposely direct a communication to be received by any fewer members than the entire group.
A PTT communication connection is typically initiated by a single button-push on the wireless device that activates a half-duplex link between the speaker and each member device of the group and once the button is released, the device can receive incoming PTT transmissions once the button is released. In some arrangements, the PTT speaker will have the “floor” where no other group member can speak while the speaker is speaking. Once the speaker releases the PTT button, any other individual member of the group can engage their PTT button and they will have the floor.
In existing PTT systems, a person desiring to talk, i.e. have the floor, will press the PTT button and the wireless device will only indicate the availability of the PTT channel with an affirmative or negative audible signal. If an affirmative signal is indicated, then the person starts to talk over the PTT channel, but there is no way for the person to know if his or her communication was received by any member of the group. There accordingly is a need for a system to increase the reliability of the PTT communication being received by member devices of the designated PTT group.
Accordingly, it would be advantageous to provide a system and method for a wireless device member of a group to have a reliable PTT communication channel that at least is very likely to reach at least one member of the target group. The system and method should indicate to the person desiring to engage in a PTT communication if no group members are available on the wireless network to receive the PTT communication, or otherwise not permit talking on the PPT channel unless the required number of receiving devices is present on the wireless network. Further, such system and method should allow the member wireless devices of the PTT group to easily inform the system of their presence on the wireless network. It is thus to the provision of such a system and method to optimize the talk-permit reliability among wireless devices in a PTT group that the present invention is primarily directed.